That was among the worst things that could have happened to a popular country music performer. But there isn’t much information on it, and it’s rarely discussed. Losing a child in a terrible accident is a traumatic experience that forever changes a person’s life.
If it occurred just before a performer’s career peak, they would undoubtedly be off their game. But George Strait’s response to and processing of the tragedy was insightful and had a big impact on the musician and persona we now know as “King” George.
She was born on October 6, 1972, and was given the name Jenifer, with a single “n,” by George Strait and his wife Norma. ”. When Strait was just 20 years old, he and his high school sweetheart Norma Voss eloped to Mexico the previous December.
He had enlisted in the US Army as an infantryman and been stationed in the Pacific island of Hawaii. Jenifer was born in this town.
Strait was born in the tiny Texas village of Poteet, south of San Antonio. After receiving his Army discharge in 1975, he relocated to San Marcos to enroll at Southwest Texas State University, which is now known as Texas State University. Additionally, this is where he started his Ace in the Hole Band and began performing in nearby venues like the renowned Gruene Hall in New Braunfels and the Cheatham Street Warehouse.
In search of a record deal, George Strait frequently traveled to Nashville in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He eventually made albums there after signing with MCA Records. However, Strait chose to remain in San Marcos in order to raise his small family away from the glitz and bustle of Nashville’s music scene.
“Let’s Fall to PCs” and “You Look So Good in Love” are two songs. They were two of George Strait’s subsequent No. 1983 and 1984 saw No. 1 hits. His initial No. In 1982, “Fool Hearted Memories” had one hit. When he was named CMA Male Singer of the Year in 1985, his debut album, “Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind,” was also released. From a Texas unknown to one of the most well-known names in country music by 1986, George Strait had undergone a remarkable transformation. His career could not be going any better. At that moment, disaster struck.
Jenifer Strait was driving through San Marcos with a group of friends in a Ford Mustang on June 25, 1986. She was a 13-year-old passenger in a vehicle that also contained William Allen McDonald, 16, Joseph Wiley Robbins, 17, and Gregory Wilson Allen, 18, as well as other children. about 11:55 p.m. m. Allen made a sudden turn onto a side road. m., causing the vehicle to swerve, flip, and finally land on its top in a ditch.
Gregory Wilson Allen, the driver, walked away from the accident unharmed. After receiving minor wound care at a nearby hospital, Joseph Wiley Robbins and William Allen McDonald were allowed to go. On the other hand, Jenifer Strait was hurt in the collision and died there and then. None of the passengers were using seat belts.
Gregory Wilson Allen was eventually charged with Class A vehicular homicide following the passing of Jenifer Strait. Alcohol was not a factor in the accident, but driving too fast was what caused it, according to an investigation. Jenifer Strait was buried in Pearsall, Texas, after a funeral service at the First United Methodist Church in San Marcos, Texas.
Jenifer Strait’s unfathomable tragedy devastated George Strait and his family. They established the Jenifer Lynn Strait Foundation in order to aid kids’ organizations in the San Antonio region.
And as a result of the tragedy, George Strait made an important professional decision that has changed how we perceive the country legend: he rarely to never gives interviews.
Already a very solitary person, Strait continued to be so. He chose to stay in San Marcos despite the success of his career because of this, among other things. George Strait decided against giving any interviews after the incident because he expected to be constantly barraged with questions about it.
This was a risky move in the pre-Internet era, when magazine interviews and radio station appearances were the primary means of artist promotion. George Strait claimed in one of the few interviews he gave to The New Yorker in 2017 that. “I just gave up because I didn’t want to talk about it,”.
Longer singing would have been nice. But I had come to the realization that the only way I could handle this was to lose my career, so what if it means doing this? ”. Just by chance, things turned out that way. It wasn’t done on purpose.
George Strait let the music do the talking because it was so compelling. Strait accumulated eleven consecutive No. Despite the tragedy and its aftermath, country music saw a surge of No. 1 singles between 1986 and 1989, which was unheard of at the time.
He received Entertainer of the Year honors from the CMA in 1989 and 1990. These singles included the song “Baby Blue.”. Even though it has never been officially confirmed, George Strait is rumored to have composed and performed the song in honor of his daughter Jenifer. The song’s lyrics were written by Aaron Barker, and Jimmy Bowen and Strait collaborated on its production.
Jenifer Strait will turn 50 on this day, October 6, 2022. John George Strait Jr. In addition, George Strait’s son is born. who he affectionately refers to as “Bubba”. They frequently work together on songwriting these days.
But there is no denying that the loss of Jenifer Strait at a time when his career was beginning to peak had a negative impact on George Strait in ways that are difficult to measure. You envision George Strait’s cool, collected, reserved, and stoic hand at the wheel when you think of him. He could have been less reserved and more outspoken if Jenifer’s death hadn’t occurred.
In order to help his family cope with the tragedy of losing his daughter, George Strait had to be the rock; as a result, he earned the title of “the rock of country music.”. With artists like Travis Tritt and Garth Brooks, country music became the “Class of ’89,” with George Strait maintaining his composure. In the same way, he also came to be known as the “King” of modern country music.
